


a field of stars, a path of light

by Zakyuu



Series: Cards & Souls Event [Undertale Amino] [4]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Echo Flowers (Undertale), Flashbacks, Gen, Narrator Chara (Undertale), Recorded Conversations, kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-26
Updated: 2020-09-26
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:13:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26663494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zakyuu/pseuds/Zakyuu
Summary: Frisk stumbles upon a field of Echo flowers.What they hear is something truly surprising.
Relationships: Asriel Dreemurr & Sans, Chara & Asriel Dreemurr, Chara & Asriel Dreemurr & Sans, Chara & Frisk (Undertale), Chara & Sans (Undertale)
Series: Cards & Souls Event [Undertale Amino] [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1908355
Comments: 2
Kudos: 35





	a field of stars, a path of light

**Author's Note:**

> I have my headcanons. And I will burn with them.

You find yourself in a field of Echo flowers, this time. It's always a beautiful sight. Your attention is drawn to the petals soft glow, illuminating your surroundings a a soft blue light. It's still to dark to see clearly, however there is still enough light that you don't stumble in the dark.

Chara's presence shifts behind you, the dark cloak of determination passing overhead.

***It's just a field of Echo flowers, you know.**

You happen to disagree. Alone, the flowers are nothing special — but if you take the time to listen, and watch, you learn so many things and so many stories from them. Snippets of conversation, thousands of emotions, all left to be found by the next person.

You've never been this far out in Waterfall during your runs before. It's a nice change of pace.

***You decide to stay, despite my advice. Well, fine then. Suit yourself.**

****

There's something odd in Chara's voice, the influx of their pitch recognizable to your sensitive ears. You rely on your hearing more than your sight, so it is more like second-nature to you at this point.

You turn to where you know Chara sits, languidly laying back surrounded by a patch of flowers and staring at the crystal-speckled ceiling.

You decide to settle next to Chara and bring your knees up to your chest, resting your chin comfortably between them. A breeze — artificial, you know — sweeps by, only you and your hair are being affected by it.

By accident, your fingers brush against one of the flowers next to you. A conversation begins to unravel, like a domino effect that needed your touch to activate.

> _I still think it's weird how these plants repeat exactly what I say._

If you actually had your eyes open, then you were certain they would be blinking in shock and bewilderment. That voice almost sounds exactly like Chara, if it were a pitch higher. There's also a hint of something truly young that your friend very much lacks, as old as they claim to be.

You think you imagine Chara turn stock-still.

> _You think so? They're pretty normal here in the Underground._
> 
> __
> 
> _Well, up until I fell I thought monsters and magic were mere fantasy, Azzy._
> 
> __
> 
> _Oh yeah. Good point._

You know who Chara's talking to. How could you not? You've been through so many runs, so many timelines where you encountered the prince of the Underground -- its hard to forget.

***Frisk, can we go?**

Chara asks this tentatively, but you only frown up to where you feel their presence, and stubbornly remain seated. You don't know much about Chara and Asriel's lives before they died, and they don't tell you anything. You figure if they were dumb enough to have a conversation in a place filled with Echo flowers, they should have seen this coming.

***Ugh. It's always like this with you. Fine. I'm probably being worried over nothing, anyway.**

> _Pfft -- dork. Did you just suddenly forget that I was never from around here?_
> 
> __
> 
> _N-No! Hey, come on, stop laughing, it just slipped my mind! Back me up here, will you?_
> 
> __
> 
> _You know he agrees with me Azzy._
> 
> __
> 
> _Don't speak for him! Come on, you see where I'm coming from don't you?_

You sit up a little straighter, curious about who Chara and Asriel seem to be talking to. Of course, it's not a stretch to think that they both probably knew a lot of the monsters Underground, it's practically required for crying out loud.

But this is the first time you've ever heard someone else in the royal sibling's company. Through your time here in the Underground, you've only ever encountered records of only the both of them included. This time, there was a third.

Of course you're curious. Maybe they're still alive after all this time?

You don't notice the air around Chara's incorporeal form charge up like electricity, negative energy rolling off them in waves. You do, however, notice Chara's soul pulse rapidly, and assure them as best as you can while listening to the ensuing conversation.

> _Why aren't you -- are you actually sleeping? You're such a bonehead._

Bonehead. For some reason, a strike of familiarity strikes you. Your curiosity grows stronger than ever, and you're dying to know who Chara is talking to.

***Frisk, please, let's just go, I don't want to be here anymore--**

There's an edge to Chara's voice, urgent and pleading. You look over to Chara in concern, and you see that they're clutching their arms tightly, hugging themselves. They're floating now, trying to steer Frisk away from the field.

For all that Frisk is a pacifist, they're also really nosy. So they dig their heels on the ground and stay on the path.

> _Sansyyy, wake up! Chara and I are having a serious conversation here!_

You feel your mind grinding to a halt.

Sans? Asirel and Chara were talking to Sans? The revelation shocks you that you actually let your mouth fall open. At first you think there must be some kind of mistake, surely there were other people with the nickname Sansy. But Chara clearly called 'Sansy' a bonehead, and what other person with that name be specifically referred to as a bonehead, if not your short skeleton friend?

You need to know. In fact, you are almost DETERMINED to do so. You thought it was awfully odd that aside from Asriel, Chara had such a fixation on the ever-smiling skeleton. Perhaps this will shed some light.

Chara tries valiantly to turn away, but their soul is tightly entwined with yours, so they can only stop a few feet away from you, still able to hear the conversation in its entirety.

  
The flowers resume echoing the conversation that transpired long ago.

> _huh? oh, sorry. i'm with chara on this one, princey._

You confirm with yourself that it was indeed Sans. That kind of voice inflection was hard to replicate, and not for a lack of trying. There is still that tint of innocence, but it was undoubtedly Sans to your ears. You walk along the path, where you assume the conversation leads, because it seems like all three were walking while talking.

Three flowers burst into racuous laughter, mimicking Chara's voice exactly right. For once, you are silent, surprised by the sound. You've never heard Chara genuinely laugh out loud.

***Frisk. I don't want to be here. Let's leave.**

You express to Chara that you really want to know. You won't ask them anything, but in exchange they have to let you stay here, listen, and make your own conclusions about it.

***...You really aren't going to ask?**

You turn to Chara and verbally promise that you won't.

****

***Alright, fine. It's not like I can stop you.**

> _What?! You didn't even LISTEN to what we were saying!_
> 
> __
> 
> _don't have to. you probably spazzed out and forgot chara was born on the surface._
> 
> __
> 
> _How did you know?_
> 
> __
> 
> _mmmmmaaagic._
> 
> __
> 
> _Sansy! Be serious!_
> 
> __
> 
> _He can't be Serious, Azzy, he's Sans!_
> 
> __
> 
> _Urgghhh!_
> 
> __
> 
> _good one, chara._

You stare for a good long while, at the direction of the voices are coming from. You can't believe your ears. Chara PUNS?

***Ugh. Where do you think the smiley trashbag learned it from?**

You internally wonder why Chara sounds so angry and lonely at the same time. Do they miss Sans? Why call him that? What happened between them?

Sadly, you are a keeper of your promises, so you can't really ask Chara about it.

> _Do you ever miss the Surface, Chara?_

The conversation obviously continues from there, but there are no Echo flowers that reflect this.

Eventually, you find it, a few feet away from the previous one.

> _No. Not really._
> 
> __
> 
> _So you don't miss the sky?_
> 
> __
> 
> _azzy, i don't think --_
> 
> __
> 
> _It's fine, Sansy. And I don't know. I'm just happier down here, I guess. But I get why you guys want to see the surface again. The stars up there are cool, but I see them everyday._
> 
> __
> 
> _...I bet they're even better than the crystals down here._
> 
> __
> 
> _I don't really see a difference._
> 
> __
> 
> _the crystals up there are random. in the sky, stars, they form patterns and stuff. pictures that tell stories._
> 
> __
> 
> _Wow. Where'd you learn all that Sans?_
> 
> __
> 
> _He probably read it from a book somewhere, the nerd. Ow, hey! It's true!_
> 
> __
> 
> _doesn't mean you should say it._

You feel a pang of sympathy dash your soul. It always makes you sad whenever you hear a monster's wish to see they sky of the surface, and it makes you clench your chest even more when you hear the bitterness in Chara's voice.

You chuckle a little when Sans once again displays his intellectual prowess, despite how hard he tries to downplay it.

***He was really bad at hiding it when Azzy and I were still alive.**

You whip around to stare at Chara in surprise. They're looking away from you, a bittersweet expression coloring their face.

You don't know how to respond to that. So you don't.

You continue listening to the conversation the flowers recorded.

> _When we get to the Surface, we should all look at the stars!_
> 
> __
> 
> _Huh? Why?_
> 
> __
> 
> _what makes you say that?_
> 
> __
> 
> _You're both my best friends, silly! I want my first glimpse of the sky to be shared with you-- cause you two mean so much to me._
> 
> __
> 
> _Aww, Azzy! I love you too!_
> 
> __
> 
> _Chara, ow! Not that hard, you know that hurts!_

You smile. It's heart-warming to hear the affection from their voices alone.

Your eyes then bulge in shock, however, when you hear a soft voice speak up next.

It's Sans.

> _i..also...love you...both of you._

You are gaping.

(Chara shakes beside you, their shoulders are hunched up high. They bite their lips, averting their eyes, trying to stop the tears from rushing down their face. They're sure you don't want to see them with black goops of liquid run down their face.

They take a shaky breath. Chara misses Asriel. They miss Sans.

They miss their best friends so, so much that it _**hurts**_.)

> _Look, look bro! Sansy's blushing!_
> 
> __
> 
> _Sans! You're so cute!_
> 
> __
> 
> _urgh, you're both terrible. c'mere._
> 
> __
> 
> _Group hug!_

Three voices laugh in unison, the sound resonating with a group of Echo flowers.

You are silent. The kind of silent that defeans the room entirely, despite the sound of the flowers repeating the chorus of laughter over and over again.

You look over at Chara, noticing their shaking form, their face shadowed in darkness. You've never seen your friend so vulnerable. A part of you feels guilty for bringing up bad memories for them, but a part of you is glad you got to know more about your partner. It's complicated, so you try not to think about it anymore.

Morality is a hard thing to balance when you can just RESET, after all.

Instead, you pull Chara as much as you can into your arms. They need a friend to comfort them.

You will be that friend.

Chara stiffens in your hold for a few moments, before a sob escapes their lips and the crush their head into your shoulder, finally letting go of all the pain they must have been bottling up all this time.

Chara cries. They cry for their mistakes, cry for their pain, and cry for the ones they left behind.

Chara cries, because they got to know two of the most kindest, most selfless best friends in their entire life, and they chose to throw it all away for a plan doomed to fail.

They cry, because there is only so much burden, so much responsibility a child can hold until they reach their breaking point.

**Author's Note:**

> mandatory childhood friends asriel sans and chara for my soul


End file.
